What made you choose Point Park for grad school?

I was most excited to learn from and connect with faculty who had up-to-date knowledge and experience in the mass communication work force today. Also, the location of Point Park University seemed like a prime spot for experiencing the communications world with its close proximity to other universities and businesses.

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Why did you decide to pursue a master's degree?

I had anticipated attending graduate school for psychology; however, I decided to participate in an internship with a college life website, College Lifestyles, after finishing my undergraduate program. With College Lifestyles, I wrote articles and did some marketing and my whole outlook on my future changed. I've always had a strong interest in social media and loved connecting with readers. Through my internship, I discovered that this was something I wanted to do, so I made the choice to apply to Point Park for grad school.

How has your M.A. degree helped you in your career?

The combination of courses that I took at Point Park helped me prepare for many of the traditional PR aspects of my job. I had never written a press release before. Also, my time at Point Park really helped me get in the right mindset for a job at an agency. I was prepared to meet deadlines and really handle a variety of things that are thrown my way. My job is in social media, but I also tend to help the analytics department a lot.

Describe a typical workday as a social media coordinator.

Typically, I start my day by checking for conversations on Twitter and Facebook for the brands that I manage. I respond to anything that needs addressed and then I go into a tool called Radian6. What this does is pull in conversations about our brands from everywhere on the Internet (blogs, Facebook, Instagram, etc.). I'll read through all of the posts, mark them for sentiment, and then reply to specific posts. These tasks usually take up the whole morning and then my afternoons vary greatly (although I'm constantly keeping an eye/posting on the social media pages). In the afternoon, I could be doing anything from creating editorial content for our brands, creating reports, brainstorming with our team — it constantly changes.

What advice do you have for a student considering Point Park's M.A. program?

You definitely get out of the program what you put into it. Make sure to make the effort to stay in contact with your professors and fellow classmates — they're great connections and extremely knowledgeable. Also, make sure to tailor your course schedule to your interests. There are a variety of courses, so pick that ones that will challenge and excite you.

Anything else you would like to add?

Definitely seek out internships, even if they aren't for course credit. I was an intern at Smith Brothers and I got hired full time. Plus, the hands-on experience is definitely worth it.